CLAIMS that a massive increase in shipping activity at Hinkley Point C would result in many more emergency calls for the Minehead lifeboat failed to convince West Somerset Council’s cabinet to back an application for £25,000 towards a new £52,000 state-of-the-art D Class lifeboat.
At their meeting on Wednesday, cabinet members instead supported a recommendation by the Hinkley Point C Planning Obligations Board to refuse Community Impact Mitigation funding to Minehead RNLI for a replacement for its current inshore lifeboat.
The cabinet’s recommendation will be considered by the full council at a later meeting.
The Minehead station answered more than 40 calls in the past year, over 30 involving the smaller D Class boat, which needs to be replaced at a cost of £52,000.
An RNLI spokesman said the station was disappointed by the decision and added: “It is hard to think of an organisation which is more likely to experience an impact from Hinkley Point.”
The council’s deputy leader, Cllr Mandy Chilcott, told the cabinet that the board felt the application lacked sufficient detail in terms of the potential impact on the community of increased marine activity and questioned whether a contribution towards a new lifeboat could be justified.
The application was supported by Minehead Town Council, Channel Training, Watchet Boat Owners’ Association, Minehead Boatmen’s Association and Minehead and District Sea Angling Club.
Lisa Redston, the council’s community and housing impact lead, said the group raising funds for the new lifeboat had not provided detailed information on running costs or how the project would measure success in terms of Hinkley Point impact mitigation.
She said that if the fundraising target was not reached, the national RNLI would cover any shortfall.
Opposition leader Cllr Peter Murphy said he was concerned about the recommendation to refuse the grant application.
“It’s almost like ‘They’re going to do it anyway, so why should we support it?’ That’s how it seems to me.”
Full report in the Free Press